Alexis Ohanian Shares Importance of Serena Williams’ Super Bowl Dance (original) (raw)

Originally appeared on E! Online

It’s no secret that Serena Williams served up an epic moment at Super Bowl LIX.

But her husband Alexis Ohanian wants to make sure fans truly understand the significance behind the Crip Walk Serena performed during Kendrick Lamar’s halftime performance. After all, the tennis legend previously received a barrage of criticism after doing the same dance as part of her victory celebration against Maria Sharapova in 2012.

“Some of y'all have no idea how criticized Serena was for this same dance at Wimbledon 13 years ago and it shows....” he wrote on X, formerly Twitter, Feb. 10. “This is bigger than the music.”

Accompanying his tweet, in addition to a clip of Serena performing during the show, was a screenshot of some of the backlash Serena received at the time.

In addition to allegations that the victory celebration glamorized gang violence, Fox Sports’ Jason Whitlock alleged at the time, “What Serena did was akin to cracking a tasteless, X-rated joke inside a church... Serena deserved to be called out. What she did was immature and classless.”

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At the time of the controversy, Serena—who lost her oldest sister Yetunde Price to gang violence in 2003—told reporters, "I didn't know what else to do. I was so happy, and next thing I know I started dancing and moving. I didn't plan it. It just happened."

Now, following her Super Bowl cameo, the 23-time Grand Slam champion joked, “Man, I did not crip walk like that at Wimbledon. Ooh, I would’ve been fined.”

Serena Williams attends super bowl 2025

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And indeed, the reception to Serena’s Crip Walk over a decade later was largely positive. Not only was it a full-circle, redemptive moment for tennis fans, but also for those who are aware of Serena’s romantic history with Drake.

The pair were rumored to be dating in the early aughts, and in the time since Serena has appeared in Drake’s song “Middle Of The Ocean,” in which he refers to her husband as a groupie.

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So, to have Serena dance during Kendrick’s song “Not Like Us,” which calls out Drake and is a significant part of his and Kendrick’s longstanding feud, seems to also be a targeted jab.

While most fans thought the moment epic, however, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith had another opinion.

Serena Williams, Alexis Ohanian, Olympia at the 2024 Paris Olympics

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“If I’m your husband, I’m thinking, ‘Why are you up there trolling him—trolling your ex?’” he said during a Feb. 10 episode of the First Take podcast. “If I’m married, and my wife is going to troll her ex—go back to his ass. Because clearly you don’t belong with me. What you worried about him for—and you with me?”

But for his part, Alexis—who shares two daughters with his wife of eight years—doesn’t seem to be worried about any of Serena’s former flames.

In addition to calling the halftime show “pretty fantastic,” he also retweeted his defense of Serena and tagged Stephen, writing, “I got you.”

For more of the celebrity appearances at Super Bowl LIX, keep reading.

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